Apparatus for recording wide-angle stereoscopic pictures



June 20, 1967 APPARATUS FOR Filed Aug. SO, 1965 H. L. RATLIFF, JR3,326,106

RECORDING WIDE ANGLE STEREOSCOPI C P I CTURES 3 Sheets-$heet 1 INVENTOR.

June 20, 1967 H. L. RATLIFF, JR

APPARATUS FOR RECORDING WIDE-ANGLE STEREOSCOPIC PICTURES Filed Aug. 30,1965 FIG?) FIG.4

INVETOR.

www? L 4 June 20, 1967 H. l.. RATLIFF, JR 3,326,106

APPARATUS FOR RECORDING WIDE-ANGLE STEREOSCOPIC PICTURES Filed Aug. 50,1965 3 Sheets-Sheet MAQ/1757K United States Patent O 2 Claims. (Cl.95-18) ABSTRACT GF THE DTSELGSURE There is a means 39 of placing a rightreal image 32 and a left virtual image 34 upon an object plane 41 withthe picture centers thereof substantially separated. There is a means 36or 36 of focusing the images at 41 upon an image plane 40 wherein theimage has three portions: a central portions 28, a right side portion 27and a left side portion 29. There is a means of separably focusing andrecording the central portion 2S. Therefore, a picture is produced thatcan be viewed in a viewer such as described in U.S. Patent 3,272,069 toproduce a wide-angle re-creation without viewing a strip between theleft and right eye views.

This application is a divisional application of my co pending priorapplication Ser. No. 429,316 filed Feb. 1, 1965.

A brief summary of the invention is as follows:

The present invention relates generally to apparatus for recordingwide-angle stereoscopic pictures from images at an enlarged objectplane.

As described in my copending application 429,317, now U.S. aPtent3,251,284 (which had the same original disclosure as the parent casehereof), it is desirable at times to perform certain manual operationsupon wideangle pictures and to then record them such as to he viewablein a viewer similar to that most pointedly described in my U.S. Patent3,272,069 but also described in the parent hereof, from an enlargedobject plane.

It is the primary object of the present invention to accomplish this.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will become more apparentfrom a study of the following description taken with the accompanyingdrawings wherein:

FIG. l diagrammatically illustrates apparatus which is usable to enablea person to view the end product of the present invention with one formof the end product mounted therein.

FIG. 2 illustrates another form the end product of the present inventionmay take.

FIGS. 3 and 4 diagrammatically illustrate one form of the contemplatedapparatus to practice the invention.

FIG. 5 diagrammatically illustrates another form of the contemplatedapparatus to practice the invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates another form the end product of the present inventionmay take.

FIGS. 7 and 8 diagrammatically illustrate apparatus for producing an endproduct other than that of the present invention which isinterchangeable with that of the present invention in that it can beviewed in the same type viewing device.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 3 and 4. There is a means 39 of placing areal right and a virtual left eye view image 32 and 34 respectively uponan object plane 41 whereby the picture center of 32 is substantiallydisplaced to the right of the picture center of 34 and the images uponplane 41 comprise three parts: the pant (to the left of 32) containingonly a virtual wide-angle image 34 (the real image 34 is horizontal asshown in FIGS. 3 and 4, but semitransparent mirror 30, which makes a 45angle with both this horizontal plane (of 34) and the object plane 41,as shown, places the virtual image 34 of real image 34 upon object plane41), the part (to the right of 34') containing only a real wide-angleimage 32, and the central part (to the left of the right edge of 34 andthe right of the left edge of 32) containing both the virtual wide-angleimage 34 and the real wide-angle image 32.

There is a means 36, which is a camera lens system, for focusing theimages 32 and 34 upon an image plane 40, which has a central portion 28(corresponding to the above-described central part) behind 35 and twoside portions 27 and 29 (corresponding to the above-described parts tothe right of 34 and to the left of 32), see also FIG. 1, with the rightand left picture centers approximately the same distance apart as theoptical axes of oculars 26 of the device of FIG. 1 which will bedescribed in greater detail hereinafter.

There is a means 31, 33 and 35 between planes 41 and 40 operating uponthe rays from the central part of 41 (to the left of the right edge of34 and the right of the left edge of 32), whereby there is separatelyfocused (i.e., in alternate conjugate strips, R and L, as shown incentral portion 28 of FIG. 1 or in a well known polarizing manner asshown in central portion 28 of FIG. 6 and more completely described inmy above cited Patent 3,- 272,069) both a right wide-angle picture ofthe right wideangle object plane image 32 and a left wide-angle pictureof the left wide-angle object plane image 34 upon the central portion 28(behind 35) of the image plane picture at 40. This means between 40 and41 is specifically contemplated to be vertical polarizing sheet 31overlying irnage 32, as shown, horizontal polarizing sheet 33 overlyingimage 34 (not 34 but between it and 40), as shown, to give the rays from32 a different axis of polarization from the rays from 34', andanalyzing sheet 35 which is made up of a multiplicity of alternate,vertical strip elements with the adjacent strips having ditferent axesof polarization whereby one group of strips will pass rays from 32 andthe adjacent strips will pass rays from 34. However, the means between40 and 41 to provide the function, such as separable R and L strips ason 40 of FIG. 1, could be any obvious equivalent of this.

inherently the image thusly focused upon the image plane 40 of FIGS. 3and 4 could be viewed directly by a device such as the one shown in FIG.1 or recorded upon film or media 22 and placed in a viewer such as shownin FIG. 1 for viewing.

The essential features of the viewer to view the end product of thepresent invention are shown in FIG. l. The viewer needs wide-angleoculars 26 which have their optical axes spaced approximately theinterpupillary distance (2.56 inches) apart, as supported by some sortof housing 21, and some sort of separating means 25, i.e. a lenticularor grating screen 25 to coact with the separably focused or recordedcentral portion 28, i.e. the R and L strips of 28. If the images arerecorded as shown in FIG. 6 hereof, a viewer which is pointedly shown inFIG. 4 of said 3,272,069 and described in the parent case hereof or itsequivalent will be needed, using analyzers such as M and N of 3,272,069.

In an alternative system of FIG. 5 two lens systems 36 are used withtheir respective optical axes passing through the picture centers of 32and 34. Therefore, 27 and 2.9 fall on the inside of the respective rightand left pictures at 40 (since they are inverted) and both 28 fall onthe outside thereof. As before, 27 represents the area to the right of34', 29 represents the area to the left of 32, and 28 represents thearea between the right edge of 34 and the left edge of 32.

In this system analyzers 35 are placed between means 36' and means 39,and means 39 is as described hereinabove for FIGS. 3 and 4. The imagesat 40, in the case of FIG. 5, are recorded on a well known form ofpolarizing lrn 22 (of FIG. 5) and are inverted and overlapped by obviousmeans as shown in FIG. 6 with both the 28 por tions falling in thecenter where they should and the 27 and 29 portions falling on therespective sides where they should. For more details of the operativeprinciples of this picture see said Patent 3,251,284, wherein r.s., v.p.and h.p. therein correspond to 42, 43 and 44 herein, and for how thispicture is viewed see said Patent 3,272,069, FIG. 4.

As described in said 3,251,284 (see the description of FIGS. 24, 25, and26 therein) the pictures produced by the present system areinterchangeable with the pictures produced by a wide-angle stereoscopicsystem recording scenes directly from nature comprising wideangle lenses46, separable recording means 45 and film 22. (For more details see3,251,284 wherein f r., f.l., r.r., r.l., f., r.e.v., l.e.v., v.p.,h.p., FIG. 24, FIG. 25, and FIG. 26 thereof correspond to 46, 46, 45,45, 22, 32', 34", 43, 44, FIG. 7, FIG. 2, and FIG. 8 hereofrespectively.

While the invention has been disclosed and described in some detail inthe drawings and foregoing description, they are to be considered asillustrative and not restrictive in character, as other modificationsmay readily suggest themselves to persons skilled in the art and withinthe broad scope of the invention, reference being had to the appendedclaims.

I claim: 1. Apparatus for focusing for recording wide-angle stereoscopiccomposite pictures to be viewed at substantially the focal plane ofwide-angle oculars having relatively short focal lengths and opticalaxes approximately the interpupillary distance apart with a meansbetween the oculars and their focal plane to separate respective rightand left eye views in a central portion of their focal plane comprising:

first means for placing right and left eye View images upon an objectplane whereby the right eye View image picture center is substantiallydisplaced to the right of the left eye view image picture center and theimages upon said object plane comprise three parts: a rst partcontaining only a virtual wide-angle picture image of one eye view, asecond par-t containing only a real wide-angle picture image of theother eye view and a central part containing both a virtual wide-anglepicture image of the one eye view and a real wide-angle picture of theother eye view;

second means for focusing the images at said object plane upon an imageplane with the right and left picture centers approximately the samedistance apart as the optical axes of said oculars at said focal planeof said oculars;

third means between said object plane and said image plane operatingupon the rays from said central part of the object plane whereby thereis separately focused both a right wide-angle picture of the right eyeview object plane image and a left wide-angle picture of 4 the left eyeview object plane image upon the central portion of the image planepicture;

thus producing a wide-angle stereoscopic composite picture from theobject plane picture with the right and left images separable in thecentral portion as seen through said oculars and the separating means toeliminate the viewing of a strip between the left and right eye views asseen through said oculars.

2. Apparatus for recording wide-angle stereoscopic composite pictures tobe viewed at substantially the focal plane of wide-angle oculars havingrelatively short focal lengths and optical axes approximately theinterpupillary distance apart with a means between the oculars and theirfocal plane to separate respective right and left eye views in a centralportion of their focal planes comprising:

rst means for placing right and left eye View images upon an objectplane whereby the right eye view image picture center is substantiallydisplaced to the right of the left eye view image picture center and theimages upon said object plane comprise three parts: a first partcontaining only a virtual wide-angle picture image of one eye view, asecond part containing only a real wide-angle picture image of the othereye view and a central part containing both a virtual wide-angle pictureimage of the one eye view and a real wide-angle picture image of theother eye view;

second means for focusing the images at said object plane upon an imageplane about respective aXes which pass substantially through therespective picture centers at said object plane and are substantiallyperpendicular to said object plane;

third means between said object plane and said image plane operatingupon the rays from said central part of the object plane whereby thereis separately focused both a right wide-angle picture of the right eyeview object plane image and a left-angle picture of the left eye viewobject plane image upon the central portion of the image plane picture;

fourth means of separably recording both the focused images in saidcentral portion and recording the remainder of each of the focusedimages in side portions upon a media with the right and left picturecenters approximately the same distance apart as the optical axes ofsaid oculars'at said focal plane of said oculars;

thus producing upon said media a wide-angle stereoscopic compositepicture from the object plane picture with the right and left imagesseparable in the central portion as seen through said oculars and theseparating means to eliminate the viewing of a strip between the leftand right eye views as seen through said oculars.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 944,255 11/1948 France. 977,368 11/1950France.

JOHN M. HORAN, Primary Examiner.

1. APPARATUS FOR FORCING FOR RECORDING WIDE-ANGLE STEREOSCOPIC COMPRSITEPICTURES TO BE VIEWED AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE FOCAL PLANE OF WIDE-ANGLEOCULARS HAVING RELATIVELY SHORT FOCAL LENGTHS AND OPTICAL AXESAPPROXIMATELY THE INTERPUPILLARY DISTANCE APART WITH A MEANS BETWEEN THEOCCULARS AND THEIR FOCAL PLANE TO SEPARATE RESPECTIVE RIGHT AND LEFT EYEVIEWS IN A CENTRAL PORTION OF THEIR FOCAL PLANE COMPRISING: FIRST MEANSFOR PLACING RIGHT AND LEFT EYE VIEW IMAGES UPON AN OBJECT PLANE WHEREBYTHE RIGHT EYE VIEW IMAGE PICTURE CENTER IS SUBSTANTIALLY DISPLACED TOTHE RIGHT OF THE LEFT EYE VIEW IMAGE PICUTRE CENTER AND THE IMAGES UPONSAID OBJECT PLANE COMPRISE THREE PARTS: A FIRST PART CONTAINING ONLY AVIRTUAL WIDE-ANGLE PICTURE IMAGE OF ONE EYE VIEW, A SECOND PARTCONTAINING ONLY A REAL WIDE-ANGLE PICTURE IMAGE OF THE OTHER EYE VIEWAND A CENTRAL PART CONTAINING BOTH A VIRTUAL WIDE-ANGLE PICTURE OF THEOTHER EYE VIEW; AND A REAL WIDE-ANGLE PICTURE OF THE OTHER EYE VIEW;SECOND MEANS FOR FOCUSING THE IMAGES AT SAID OBJECT PLANE UPON AN IMAGEPLANE WITH THE RIGHT AND LEFT PICTURE CENTERS APPROXIMATELY THE SAMEDISTANCE APART AS THE OPTICAL AXES OF SAID OCULARS AT SAID FOCAL PLANEOF SAID OCULARS; THIRD MEANS BETWEEN SAID OBJECT PLANE AND SAID IMAGEPLANE OPERATING UPON THE RAYS FROM SAID CENTRAL PART OF THE OBJECT PLANEWHEREBY THERE IS SEPARATELY FOCUSED BOTH A RIGHT WIDE-ANGLE PICTURE OFTHE RIGHT EYE VIEW OBJECT PLANE IMAGE AND A LEFT WIDE-ANGLE PICTURE OFTHE LEFT EYE VIEW OBJECT PLANE IMAGE UPON THE CENTRAL PORTION OF THEIMAGE PLANE PICTURE; THUS PRODUCING A WIDE-ANGLE STEREOSCOPIC COMPOSITEPICTURE FROM THE OBJECT PLANE PICTURE WITH THE RIGHT AND LEFT IMAGESSEPARABLE IN THE CENTRAL PORTION AS SEEN THROUGH SAID OCULARS AND THESEPARATING MEANS TO ELIMUNATE THE VIEWING OF A STRIP BETWEEN THE LEFTAND RIGHT EYE VIEWS AS SEEN THROUGH SAID OCULARS.